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Royal Ascot round-up: Gstaad hits the heights in Coventry Stakes

Updated / Tuesday, 17 Jun 2025 18:42
Gstaad is a half-brother to Group One-winning two-year-old Vandeek
Gstaad is a half-brother to Group One-winning two-year-old Vandeek

Gstaad blew the Coventry Stakes field apart to give Aidan O'Brien an 11th win in the Royal Ascot feature.

Sent off the 7-2 favourite and drawn on the near side, his group appeared to be behind for much of the way before Ryan Moore sent him towards the centre of the track with two furlongs to run.

It never really looked in doubt from there and he came home three lengths clear of 80-1 outsider Do Or Do Not on the far side, with Coppull third at 66-1.

O'Brien said: "I’m absolutely delighted and he looks a very good horse, doesn’t he – you don’t win the Coventry like that often and he was visually very good.

"We’ve always loved him and he’s only had the one run, obviously, but has always worked like a good horse. This was the first horse Ryan rode when he came over in January or February time and he was highly thought of then.

"He’s big, he’s scopey and goes with his head down and is very genuine and he looks like he will get further than six. He has all the attributes.

"I’d imagine we would go for a Group One now and the Prix Morny is what they usually do after winning this."

The long-time favourite for this race was Gstaad’s stablemate Albert Einstein before he suffered a setback earlier this month, ruling him out of the meeting.

Comparing his winner to the potential star confined to barracks at Ballydoyle, O’Brien added: "Albert Einstein was always something very different and a very quick horse, incredibly quick from the day we worked him.

"Gstaad is a big horse who travels well and with lots of speed. We always thought this was a top-tier horse alongside Albert, but your man was just so fast it was different."

Henry de Bromhead's Ascending knuckled down under Billy Lee in the concluding stages of the two-and-a-half-mile Ascot Stakes to see off Nurburgring, with the latter's trainer Joseph O’Brien also saddling the third and fourth home in Comfort Zone and Leinster.

De Bromhead explained the Ascot Stakes was not even his first choice for the 20-1 winner.

"I’m delighted. I wanted to go for the mile and six (Copper Horse Stakes), I thought he had a great chance but he didn’t get in so we ran in this one and now we’ve won – happy days," said De Bromhead.

"He’s just a star. He was bought to go hurdling and he ran very well over hurdles but he never really loved it, so we said we’d go back on the Flat.

"I think we’ll stay on the Flat, he seems to love it so I think we should.

"Billy opted to go out and get a bit of light, the horse travelled beautifully and he gave him a super ride. He knew he had a kick so he used the kick a bit earlier than he had planned.

"It’s amazing to win any of these races, we’re fortunate enough to train good horses. We’re very lucky."

Haatem notched his second victory at Royal Ascot with a determined display in the Wolferton Stakes.

Placed in the English and Irish Guineas last season, Richard Hannon's charge won the Jersey Stakes at this meeting 12 months ago, but was not seen in competitive action again until April.

Having finished fifth on his Sandown comeback and then fourth in a Listed event in France, 8-1 chance Haatem stepped up to a mile and a quarter and saw out the trip well to beat Galen by three-quarters of a length under James Doyle, with 4-1 favourite King’s Gambit – like the winner carrying the Wathnan Racing colours – a strong-finishing third.

Hannon said of Haatem: "He’s pleased everyone all the way through his career, especially me.

"He’s an amazing horse and a pleasure to be involved with, for old connections and new connections, and he’s one of those horses that makes you remember why you train horses.

"What did he cost, 27,000 guineas? And the best thing about racing is you can find these horses and they then win these big races.

"He worked in the week and it was the best piece of work he’s done all year and I thought 'is this the right thing to do, upping him in trip, maybe we should stick to a mile?’.

"James said he’s loved it despite being a bit eager early and it’s not out of the question we come back to a mile, but he will probably turn up in the Eclipse (would need to be supplemented) and I could see him running very well in that."

The Wathnan team and retained rider Doyle completed a quickfire double in the concluding Copper Horse Stakes, with John and Thady Gosden's French Master flying home to delight favourite-backers.

Making his first outing since being bought by the Qatar-based owners and also sporting blinkers for the first time, the 5-2 market leader was nearer last than first at the top of the straight but was doing his best work at the finish and was two and a half lengths clear at the winning line.

The Gosdens were also completing a double following the spectacular earlier success of Field Of Gold in the St James’s Palace Stakes.

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